Many BCBAs spend an enormous amount of time in their cars. This seems like such a waste of time. It leads to complaints like “I spend more time in my car than actually working with kids;” “It is hard to focus because my phone is blowing up all the time with questions, schedule changes, and emergencies;” “It is so stressful when an emergency occurs and I’m an hour away.” In these situations, it is easy to dream about how nice it would be to work in a school or clinic where all the kids would be right there! I’d work with one student from 9-10, the next student from 10-11. Maybe there’d even be time for a real lunch!
On the flip side, many BCBAs who work in schools or clinics are sick of all the interruptions. “There are too many interruptions here. As soon as I sit down to work, five people come in with a question that will just take a minute. I’m going home or to Starbucks to work.” Due to the constant flow of interruptions, it is easy work 10-12 hours and feel like you got nothing done.
So, when all the kids we are working with are spread out, often we think it would be better if they were all together. When all the kids we are working with are together, often we think it would be better if they were spread out. What’s going on here?
I wrote the above before the current situation where many of us are transitioning into remote consultation. Which has its own set of huge benefits and drawbacks.
Many of us have problems with organizational skills. Sure, improvement in organizational skills or creating systems can definitely be helpful. But I don’t think it will solve the problems described above.
The problem is that frequently we are not talking to our staff nearly enough. Talking to your staff regularly will decrease the chance they will interrupt with questions, prevent emergencies from occurring, and increase the chance they will know how to handle emergencies when they happen. I know, I know, the insurance company doesn’t pay for staff meetings. You still have to do it though. If you don’t, quality will suffer.